Cheese of the Month: September - Spicherhalde

This unique, seasonal cheese is made in the Bavarian Alps. It is made by the Vogel family between the months of May through to September. Every summer the family moves its small herd of Brown Swiss cows from the Austrian/German border through the Allgau Alps to their summer home in the Bavarian Alps at an altitude of 4,800 feet.

Here the cows graze on the summer grasses and Alpine flowers to produce a rich and flavourful milk. The Vogels add homemade rennet to the milk that has been heated in traditional copper vats. The curds are then lifted out, pressed into forms to make wheels and then these wheels are placed in a brine bath for three days. After that the cheeses are placed on wooden shelves to mature for a year or more.

Spicherhalde is a full flavoured cheese that is earthy, with floral notes and a sweet nuttiness Philippe says: "The sweetness of Paxton's Caramelised Onion Chutney works really well with the spiciness of this cheese and the Paxton's Hatchet Knife is great for cutting hard cheese like this."

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Did you know ?

Cheese is first thought to have been made in Sumeria in 5,000 BC, probably as an accidental result of the enzyme rennet which is found in a calf's stomach curdling the milk which a shepherd was carrying in a leather bottle.